Friday, April 27, 2012

For the Locals: Franklin's Main Street Festival This Weekend!

Franklin, TN – Downtown Franklin’s 29th annual Main Street Festival is April 28-29,2012, featuring more than 200 artisans & crafters, three stages, two carnivals and an international food court to round out a full weekend of entertainment.

Hours for the free street festival are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, with the Fourth Avenue Street Dance continuing until 10 p.m., and all activities re-opening noon to 6 p.m. Sunday.

Presented by First Tennessee and produced by the Heritage Foundation of Franklin and Williamson County and the Downtown Franklin Association, the weekend event is expected to attract more than 100,000 visitors to a full slate of family-oriented activities, non-stop musical entertainment and international flavors of more than 20 food vendors.

Handmade work to be exhibited includes original oil and watercolor paintings, pottery, jewelry, furniture, woodworking, ornamental iron, stained glass, photography, home and garden accents, birdhouses, leatherwork, and much more.

In addition to a juried arts and crafts show with more than 200 entries, the festival offers a special area of children’s activities on Third Avenue South between City Hall and the Old Courthouse.

Free entertainment is offered continuously on three stages—the First Tennessee Stage on the Public Square, the Heritage Stage on Fourth Avenue North and the Beer/Wine Garden Stage on Fourth Avenue South.

There will also be a full-scale, traditional carnival at North Margin Street and Second Avenue North–the site of the future City of Franklin Bicentennial Park. The carnival opens earlier than the festival on Thursday and goes through Sunday.

Carnival hours are 5 to 10 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday, April 28 through May 1. Thursday nights and all day Sunday are “wristband” days at the carnival, during which a $20 wristband offers unlimited access to the rides.

The Main Street Festival is produced by The Heritage Foundation of Franklin and Williamson County and it division, the Downtown Franklin Association. Proceeds from the event are used to fulfill the mission of the organization, which is to protect and preserve the architectural, geographic and cultural heritage of Franklin and Williamson County and to promote the ongoing economic revitalization of downtown Franklin in the context of historic preservation.

The Main Street Festival is located in Historic Downtown Franklin, Tenn., exit No. 65 from I-65, three miles west to the Public Square.